Before you upload a file, it helps to know what Pipeline CRM will accept, what it will skip, and what has to be set up in advance. This article covers the rules that most often explain a surprising import result.
What you can import
Record type
How
Notes
Companies
CSV, XLS, XLSX
Company names must be unique
People
CSV, XLS, XLSX, or vCard
Every person needs an owner
Deals
CSV, XLS, XLSX
Can link to both a company and one or more people
Activities
CSV, XLS, XLSX
See Import Activities
File rules
- Supported formats: CSV, XLS, and XLSX.
- One record type per import. You can't mix companies, people, and deals in a single file.
- The first row must contain column headers, and each row must be one complete record.
- Your file's column separator must match the CSV Column Separator setting in My Profile > General.
What Pipeline CRM won't import
- Data with no matching field. Every column has to map to a default field or a custom field that already exists. Create your custom fields before you import.
- Duplicate company names. Company names must be unique. If your file lists the same company twice, only the first row imports.
- People who already exist, when duplicate checking is on. Matches are found by Work Email and skipped.
- Original activity timestamps. Imported activities are stamped with the date and time you ran the import, not the date the activity happened.
- New activity categories. Your column headers must match categories that already exist in your account. Only admins can add categories.
Duplicate checking is not the same for every record type
Record type
How duplicates are found
What happens
Companies
Company name, automatically
An exact match won't import
People
Work Email, when Check for duplicates is enabled
Exact matches are skipped and listed in your confirmation email
Deals
Not checked
Every row imports, even if a matching deal already exists
Because deals aren't checked for duplicates, importing the same deals file twice creates two copies of every deal. Check Manage and Undo Imports before re-running a deals import.
What can't be undone
- Updates. Records changed with Update Existing Records by Import can't be rolled back — the old values are overwritten.
- Everything else can be removed as a batch from Manage Imports.
Need help? Contact support at customercare@pipelinecrm.com.